In 2017, the Space Foundation announced a new annual scholarship honoring its former board chairman — the Admiral James O. Ellis, Jr., New Generation National Security Scholarship was created to provide a young professional member of the United States Armed Forces full participation in the Space Foundation’s annual Space Symposium and benefit from its mentoring, networking and professional development opportunities.

For 2019, (S)Sgt. Patrick Harper, USAF, is the recipient of this prestigious scholarship. He will receive full registration for the 35th Space Symposium, to be held April 8-11, 2019, at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Colo. In addition to the main program, he will participate in the Symposium’s New Generation Space Leaders program, the Symposium’s Space Classified program and will be seated at the Space Foundation Board of Directors table at dining functions during the Symposium.

(S)Sgt. Harper was nominated by his leadership at Fort Gordon, Georgia. He is fluent in Arabic and was recently selected for a promotion, taking over the responsibility of 24/7 mission coverage and providing critical information to Combatant Commanders. Harper is pursuing his undergraduate degree in planetary geology, he volunteers with the local Astronomy Club of Augusta and is an active member of the international Space Generation Advisory Council for young professionals.